Saturday, 31 December 2011

The anime studio Gonzo revealed this week that it earned 28 million yen (about US$360,000) in operating profit or 2 million yen (US$26,000) in ordinary profit during the first half of the fiscal year ending in March 2012. The first half ran from April to September of 2011.

Gonzo's reported net profit did drop from 47 million yen (US$570,000) in the same period last year to 42 million yen (US$550,000) in the red. The company's impairment for contributions from the GDH Entertainment Fund #1, Japan Entertainment Investment Business Limited Partnership, and the Contents Firm Contribution Investment Business Limited Partnership during that period were factors in the loss.

The company's net sales also dropped to 368 million yen (US$4.8 million), a drop of 32.7% from 547 million yen (US$7.1 million) during the same period last year and a bigger drop from 1.26 billion yen (US$16.4 million) the year before. Gonzo limited its spending on anime productions to 125 million yen (US$1.6 million) during the first half of the 2012 fiscal year.

In the past year, the company's Nyanpire The Animation series began airing in July, and Gonzo's Last Exile -Fam, The Silver Wing- television anime premiered in October. Gonzo also created a promotional anime for next year's Kyokugen Dasshutsu ADV: Zennin Shibō Desu (Extreme Escape Adventure: Good People Die) game developed by Chunsoft.

Global Business
Gonzo is working in three potential areas of growth, all in international business. The first is "Gonzo+," its global venture which is developing the Afro Samurai franchise. In particular, Gonzo+ is working with the American/Dominican Republic production company Indomina to produce the live-action Afro Samurai film.
In a partnership with the Malaysian animation studio Funcel and Malaysia's National Film Development Corporation, Gonzo is producing the Satria - The Warriors of the 7 Elements adventure series for a fall 2012 release. Finally, Gonzo is collaborating with Chinese companies on the joint production of three projects.

History
Gonzo was established in 1992 when anime producer Shouji Murahama left Gainax to start his own company. Gonzo merged with Shinichiro Ishikawa's Digimation company in 2000 and a new parent company was formed, GDH (Gonzo Digimation Holdings). The Nihon Keizai Shimbun paper reported in 2009 that GDH was restructuring its anime production operations after GDH asked 20% of its workforce to "voluntarily retire" in 2008. GDH has since absorbed Gonzo and adopted the Gonzo name for itself.
Last year, Gonzo returned to profitability with 74 million yen (about US$900,000) in operating profit or 28 million yen (US$340,000) in ordinary profit during the first half of the fiscal year ending in March 2011. The anime studio's net profits dropped from 82 million yen (US$1 million) in the same period the previous year.

The Japanese anime news website Anime Anime Biz posted a list of movie titles and dates that the films will be released theatrically in Japan in 2012. In addition to the below list, the site notes that an Anpanman and a Precure film are released each year in summer and fall respectively, although these films for 2012 have not yet been formally announced.

Thursday, 29 December 2011

The Hyper Japan festival in London has announced that the anime singer Natsuko Aso will be performing on the Friday and Saturday of the event (February 24 and 25).

Aso's song credits include the opening songs for Baka and Test - Summon the Beasts and Modern Magic Made Simple, as well as the closing numbers for Tantei Opera Milky Holmes Dai-Ni-Maku. (More of her song credits are available on her encyclopedia page; her website is here.) In addition, Aso played Chisame Hasegawa in the live-action TV version of Negima (Negima! Magister Negi Magi).

Meanwhile, the distributor Third Window film has tweeted that the actress Eri Fuse will attend Hyper Japan. Fuse is known for such live-action films as the comedy Turtles Swim Faster than Expected, but she also played Hiromi Tanaka in Cutie Honey The Live (based on Go Nagai's manga). Miki Satoshi, the director of Turtles Swim Faster Than Expected, will also attend Hyper Japan.

The festival will take place from Friday 24 February to Sunday 26 February 2011, at Brompton Hall, Earls Court. Tickets are available here.

On 1/7/2012, there will be a PRDT 48 hr marathon on Nicktoons, with a commercial emphesizing the fact that Tommy is in it.
The second half of Samurai will air as the "twentieth" season of Power Rangers, titled, "Power Rangers Super Samurai".
Filming for the "twenty-first" season, "Mega-Force" (based on "Goseiger") will begin, with it airing in 2013.
Gokaiger has been extended to fifty-ONE episodes, with the thirty-sixth season of Super Sentai, "Tokumei Sentai Gobuster", premiering in Febuary, instead of late January.
Power Morphicon comes back for a third session in August. Unlike the last two conventions, the one-day passes are given ranger color of blue and yellow, much like how there are red, silver, and gold.
All 200 gold passes are already sold out.
I don't know about Pat, but Lavender and I are definately going, so be sure to muster the investigative ability to find us there.
Having said that, Johnny Yong Bosch (Adam Park MMPR2-PRIS, PROO) and his band are touring in Texas, Tennessee, Georgia, and one other state (can't remember which), but has expressed interest in coming to PMC3.
Lastly, MMPR-R Dragonzord will appear in the 2012 toyline, so, you can wipe your tears if you have MMPR-R Titanus, because you will soon have the complete set of seven.

United Kingdom
Last week we reported on the party thrown for terminally ill children in Downing Street; mother Jane Berman from Chigwell was there with her son Ross and said: "“Ross was absolutely thrilled to meet Doctor Who. He's a real fan. Matt Smith came running down Downing Street and ran up to Ross and said 'I've come all the way from Gallifrey to see you'" [Epping Forest News, 20 Dec 2011]

Matt Smith, who is an ambassador for organisers Starlight, said: "Thousands of children will spend this Christmas in hospital and, along with a White Christmas, this year I am wishing for some much-needed festive cheer for these kids." [Watford Observer, 20 Dec 2011]

Fan Erica Quinn from Glasgow has turned her front door into the TARDIS doors: ""I call it my double take door. People walk by and just stop and stare. People have started calling me the Doctor Who House Lady. Once I was getting a taxi on the other side of Glasgow - and I went up to the taxi rank and asked to go to the West End. One of the drivers said: 'I'll take you, because I want to go past the Doctor Who House. I was like, 'That's my house'." Erica also has life-sized figures of the 10th, 11th Doctors, Daleks and Captain Jack amongst others: "They switch around and sometimes they come out of the windows They are an excellent deterrent against having your house broken into because it looks like someone is watching." [Belfast Telegraph, 26 Dec 2011]

Daleks and K9 were on hand to entertain visitors to Robots Live at Snibston Discovery Park, Coalville. Organiser Alan Young said: "It was a great day and a lot of fun. I think it's safe to say the Daleks stole the show. We normally stage big arena events but this was a chance for people to get up close and personal with the robots and the people who built them." [Leicester Mercury, 28 Dec 2011]

BBC Radio Leicester presenter Karl Cooper is an avid Dalek collector: "They adorn windowsils and the fireplace at home. When friends are short on gift ideas, the collection seems to grow!! A life long fan of The Doctor (Jon Pertwee era is his fave), he'd love a full sized Dalek but complains he has neither the cash or space to get one. He's also not sure how the two cats would react to such an invasion!!" [BBC Radio Leicester, 28 Dec 2011]

Australia
New series Outland writer and comedian Adam Richard reveals his Doctor Who inspiration: "My scariest TV moment was when ... Noah took his hand out of his pocket and it had mutated into green bubble-wrap. (The Ark in Space). I decided a television career was for me when ... I started noticing my favourite episodes of Doctor Who seemed to be written by the same man (Robert Holmes - genius)" [Sydney Morning Herald, 22 Dec 2011]

The Tuesday repeat of the Doctor Who Christmas Special, The Doctor, The Widow and The Wardrobe had an audience of 1.1 million viewers according to unofficial overnight figures.

The show had a 9.5% share of the audience available, winning its timeslot. All Star Family Fortunes, which was scheduled against Doctor Who again, also had an average of 1.1 million watching, however Doctor Who had the higher ratings while the shows were pitted against each other.

Meanwhile more details have emerged about the Christmas Day showing. Among children aged 4-15, as well as adults aged 45-54, Doctor Who was the most watched programme on Christmas day. The only group for which Doctor Who lost out to All Star Family Fortunes was viewers aged 65+.

Doctor Who was the only programme on Christmas Day post-3pm which had an exact 50/50 male/female split.

The Japan Tourism Agency of the Japanese government announced on Monday that its "Fly to Japan!" project has been canceled. The project, which would have offered free airfare to 10,000 overseas tourists in 2012, was canceled because it "was not approved as a governmental draft budget of FY 2012."

The Japanese Tourism Agency had planned on allocating 1.1 billion yen (about US$14 million) from its requested 2012 budget for the program. The purpose of the program was to have participants spread the word of their travels online and, by extension, the safety of visiting Japan now.

The Japanese Tourism Agency's press release announcing the cancellation stated the following:

As the recovery from the earthquake is an ongoing urgent task, Japan has been vigorously working towards its restoration with the support from the world. Almost all of Japan has been back to normal and ready to welcome visitors. We are sincerely looking forward to having you to see Japan with your own eyes.
The Japan National Tourism Organization stated the following regarding the cancellation:

We realise that this announcement is going to disappoint thousands of people around the world, but we hope people will understand how insensitive it would appear for the Japanese Government to give people free flights to Japan when the cities, towns and villages devastated by the tsunami are still in desperate need of funding for reconstruction. We also would not want people thinking that the generous donations given from around the world to aide those affected by the disaster was being spent on giving people free flights.

Roland Kelts, author of the book Japanamerica: How Japanese Culture has invaded the U.S., has written an article called 'Japan leads the way in sexless love' in the U.K. newspaper The Guardian. The story discusses the claims that Japanese men are becoming more and more 'unmanly' and uninterested in girlfriends.

From the article:

"I don't like real women," one bloke superciliously sniffed on Japan's 2channel, the world's largest and most active internet bulletin board site. "They're too picky nowadays. I'd much rather have a virtual girlfriend."
Virtual girlfriends became a sensation last summer, when Japanese game-maker Konami released its second-generation of its popular Love Plus, called, aptly, Love Plus +, for the Nintendo DS gaming system. Konami skillfully arranged for an otherwise deadbeat beach resort town called Atami to host a Love Plus + holiday weekend. Players were invited to tote their virtual girlfriends, via the gaming console, to the actual resort town to cavort for a weekend in romantic bliss. The promotion was absurdly successful, with local resort operators reporting that it was their best weekend in decades.

STORY:
The Go-Busters. 3 Heroes, and their 3 Partners, the BuddyRoids. Their "Mission"- Protect the Earth, as only they can, a battle for their fate tinged with "Special Mission" begins! The stages for their battle are the Earth, and another world that looks just like Japan. Events that happened 13 years ago are where the story starts. 13 years ago, a Bug-like Program was created accidentally, and began to run wild on the Energy Management Office's Main Computer. Somehow, the building is transported to another dimension. As a by-product of the battle, man obtains the mysterious energy known as "Vaam".

13 years later. In the present time, Vaam has become an indispensable energy source. The bug program, from another dimension, once again begins its invasion of Earth. 3 children who escaped from the Energy Management office building 13 years ago appear. Acting together with their BuddyRoids, they have obtained specific abilties beyond what normal humans can do! They are the Tokumei Sentai Go-Busters!

RedBuster:

Able to teleport. Legs have been empowered with unbelievable speed. Makes Chida Nikku his partner.

Chida Nikku:
Cheetah-type mecha. Positive thinker, and though a robot, has no sense of direction. Acts like an older brother to RedBuster. Able to transform into a motorcycle for RedBuster to ride into battle (where his face becomes the handle and meter.) When fighting in robot mode, Nikku can also use his rear wheels as handheld weapons.

Buster Gear:
Equipment the Go-Busters use to go into battle, and conduct espionage. The Go-Busters suits also carry the spy motif (glasses and shoulder straps.) Indeed one of the themes of Tokumei Sentai Go-Busters is Spy Action. The first Super Sentai, Goranger, had the spy game as a main component, and in a way, Go-Busters marks the "first new sentai series."

BlueBuster:
The fated youth who gained awesome physical strength. Eldest of the Go-Busters. Makes Gorisaki Banana into his partner.

Gorisaki Banana:
Gorilla-type mecha. Faint hearted character who falls easy, and apologizes immediately for it. Always worried about BlueBuster. Acts as a mechanic in the base.

Transpod:
Buster Gear equipped to the Shoulder Strap of the Go-Busters' suits. Has the Go-Busters' mark. Transmission equipment which transports different items and weapons. (As from the toys, we also know it's a communicator/voice changer.)

Episode 45:
Awatenbou Ninja (Confused Ninja)
Airs- 1/8/12
Ninjaman appears from the jar in Megakure Shrine! Since he was sealed, and does not know of the Legend War, the Gokaiger explain old battles to him (sounds like a clip show). Ninjaman was sealed into the jar 10 years ago by the Sanshinshou, due to a certain incident, and as such, was not able to participate in the Legend War. The Gokaiger will try and get the Kakuranger power from Ninjaman, but it seems like a difficult task. Ninjaman decides to live with the Gokaiger aboard the galleon, to observe them. In other words, they have to impress him to get the power.

Episode 46:
Hero Goukaku (Hero Success)
Airs- 1/15/12
The evil in the hearts of Don and Gai is magnified by the powers of the new Action Commander, Evil Spirit Faith Healer Jyujyu. With Ninjaman observing the Gokaiger, what is about to happen?!

Episode 47:
Uragiri no Hate (The Limits of Betrayal)
Airs- 1/22/12
47 and 48 will showcase the final battle with Basco! In 47, Basco uses Sally, making a surprising strategy! Basco's final droids appear, Sunroid Solar and Goldroid Geronpa.

Episode 48:
Shukumei no Taiketsu (Showdown of Fate)
Airs- 1/29/12
Second part of the final fight with Basco.

Tuesday, 27 December 2011

The official website for the upcoming 36th Super Sentai series, Tokumei Sentai Go-Busters (特命戦隊ゴーバスターズ) have finally opened! This reveals the main plotline for the series that will start this February 26th:

The urban lives of the city now runs by a major power source known as, Enetron. A group of evil organization called Vagras aims to threaten the city by stealing the Enetron from it.

Three warriors are chosen to be a group of elite heroes, known as Tokumei Sentai Go-Busters, that will protect the city from any evil threat. Along with their partners known as Buddy Roids, they have to stop Vagras from obtaining the Enetron from the city.

The Washinomiya chamber of commerce donated 1,285,603 yen (about US$16,500) and 360 Lucky Star mobile phone chargers to Miyagi Prefecture's quake-damaged town of Shichigahama. The town of Washinomiya is home to Washinomiya Shrine, the Tokyo area's oldest major shrine and a real-life backdrop for the Lucky Star anime series. Shichigahama is the hometown of Kannagi manga creator Eri Takenashi, and the local Hanabushi shrine inspired the backdrop seen in the anime.

Kagami Yoshimizu, creator of the Lucky Star slice-of-life comedy manga, and the publisher Kadokawa Shoten issued special certificates with the author's illustration to raise funds for the devastated Shichigahama. The partnership donated half of the 2,000,000 yen (US$25,700) collected from the sale of 2,000 certificates, which cost 1,000 yen (US$13) each. The Lucky Star Washinomiya Fan Circle contributed 285,603 yen (US$3,700) to combine with the 1,000,000 yen (US$12,800) for the 1,285,603-yen (US$16,500) total.

Kannagi director Yutaka Yamamoto joined anime fans and itasha (decorated car) owners to visit the stricken region and offer relief in May. Fans had already been making almost monthly "pilgrimages" to Shichigahama since the anime aired in 2009. Lucky Star fans have also visited the Washinomiya Shrine, especially for the New Year's holidays, since the anime aired in 2007.

Kaze UK has tweeted that Princess Jellyfish (Kuragehime) will have a U.K. release "midway through 2012 in a collectors set."

Akiko Higashimura's original manga revolves around a collection of female otaku living in an apartment complex. Their world is turned upside-down when the female protagonist Tsukimi, who is obsessed with jellyfish, befriends a man named Kuronosuke, a fashionable cross-dresser. Studio Brains Base adapted the manga into an anime which aired during Fuji TV's popular late-night Noitamina time slot.

Kaze UK announced it had the Princess Jellyfish licence at MCM Expo in May 2011.

The software developer Crypton Future Media announced on Monday that its Vocaloid idol character Hatsune Miku is collaborating with Toyota Big Air, the world's biggest snowboard straight jump contest. Hatsune Miku will be catching air on a snowboard as the February 11-12 contest's image character in six illustrations, including the one to the right by Takumi Torigoe. Starting on Monday, the event's advertising, tickets, and other materials will have the six Snowboarder Hatsune Miku illustrations in Sapporo City.

The Sapporo City Transportation Bureau will launch a stamp rally on January 7. 10,000 Hatsune Miku stamp sheets will be distributed for free at nine Sapporo subway stations and one municipal train office. The first 1,000 people who stamp six of the 12 spots on their stamp sheets at designated locations (including the nine subway stations, the train office, and the Hatsune Miku-wrapped trains) will receive a set of complimentary "Toyota Big Air x Hatsune Miku" illustrated tickets. The stamp rally will last until February 5 or while supplies last.

3,000 more sets of limited-edition "Toyota Big Air x Hatsune Miku" tickets will be sold in advance at major subway stations starting on January 10. The first 1,000 people who present their ticket stubs at the event site on February 12 will receive a "Toyota Big Air x Hatsune Miku" original collaboration sticker.

Doctor Who: The Doctor, The Widow and the Wardrobe achieved an Appreciation Index, or AI, score of 84.

The Appreciation Index or AI is a measure of how much the audience enjoyed the programme. The score, out of a hundred, is compiled by a specially selected panel of around 5,000 people who go online and rate and comment on programmes. This year's score is slightly up on last year's Christmas Special.

The score was the highest on BBC One for the evening, with most programmes scoring around the 82 mark. The prize for the most appreciated programme of Christmas evening was taken by ITV1 with Downton Abbey, scoring a massive 92.

he Doctor, the Widow and The Wardrobe has debuted in Australia to solid ratings. TV Tonight reports that Doctor Who averaged 749,000 viewers in the five major capital cities. It came second in its time-slot, was the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's top-rating drama of the day and the thirteenth highest rating programme of the day overall.

Meanwhile ABC2 will repeat the entire run of the new series, Mondays-Fridays at 7.30pm, starting with Rose on Monday 2 January 2012

After the positive previews of the story, Boxing Day introduces us to the media aftermath of The Doctor, The Widow and The Wardrobe - below are some of the thoughts of reviewers of the festive adventure (click on the their names for the full reviews).

You can read our own review of the episode here.

Please note that reviews contain plot points that may be considered spoilers for those who have yet to see the episode.

Guardian
Welcome back, merry Christmas, and straight into the reason you're probably welling up right now. Putting aside the now-mandatory doomed spaceship that now must surely always feature, this was the smallest – yet perhaps the most enchanting – Christmas special we've had to date. A story where the threat is not to the universe but to the happiness of one family, and the only real enemy are some misguided and underdeveloped polluters. Any other time of year I would gnaw holes all over this, but it's Christmas, and today it felt perfect.

(Dan Martin)

Oh good, our own planet is involved, and the past. I feel more comfortable there and then. There's also a door into a different world, a snowy winter wonderland where magic sparkling baubles hang from the pine trees. Yes, there's more than a nod to Narnia, but without all the God-bothering, as far as I can see. The message, if there is one, is an eco one.

It's warmhearted and twinkly, and Matt Smith is ever so slightly annoying. But the kids like him, that's what counts.

(Sam Wollaston)
Independent
Every year the Christmas special comes back with something vastly different to the previous year and usually it proves to be on par if not stronger than the one before. The Doctor, The Widow and The Wardrobe had the perfect recipe for a Christmas special. It had a simple story that could be easily understood without too much concentration and as specials go, it avoided being sickly sweet. By the end audiences were likely to be left with a warm glow created by the mixture of comedy, tragedy and general festive cheer that never became overly sentimental.

(Neela Debnath)
Telegraph
This was packed full of festive magic, with ingenious use of Christmas trees, angels, stars, baubles, even woolly winter cardigans. The only problem? It was too busy being cute and clever to create a sufficiently memorable monster. The wooden Pagan king and queen weren’t quite hide-behind-the-sofa scary, more the sort of thing you’d see down the garden centre.

Still, The Doctor, The Widow and The Wardrobe succeeded in being the kind of broad fairytale fun that unites the generations. "A brilliant idea for a Christmas trip," as the Doctor himself said.

(Michael Hogan)
Mirror
THIS year’s was not a classic Doctor Who, but a good one and a perfect piece of Christmas English whimsy.

"Crying when you’re happy!" the Doctor puzzled. "That’s so human!" - this is Doctor Who at its best, tapping into/manipulating our emotions.

(Jim Shelley)
Metro
Whether we were born before the war, or decades after it, we all feel like we know what it's like to have survived on rations and be evacuated to the countryside - romantic dramatisation of the war is part of our national common experience, even if actual wartime isn't.

Moffat captured this perfectly as he took us back to war-torn Britain, where we met eponymous widow Madge and her children Lily and Cyril, whose escape from Blitzkrieged London to rural Dorset paved the way for a suitably Christmassy tale.

By virtue of there being so many of them, Doctor Who Christmas specials have some stiff competition when it comes to deciding which is the most gripping festive Timelord adventure of them all. However, fans of the series will probably agree that The Doctor, The Widow And The Wardrobe is up there with the best of them.

(Rachel Tarley)
Radio Times
When I heard Marge Arwell (Claire Skinner) saying, "This Christmas is going to be the best Christmas ever," I got a sinking sensation. Not just because by nature I’m a bit of a Scrooge, but because I’ve had enough of being promised "the most Christmassy Doctor Who ever". As if that were a good thing and something I’d want once in every 14 episodes. Bah!

Well, I should have had more faith in Steven Moffat, Matt Smith and co, who have pulled a cracker, and almost - almost, I say - given this Ebenezer a Christmassy glow. How can anyone resist The Doctor, the Witch and the Wardrobe?

(Patrick Mulkern)
Scottish Daily Record
Unashamedly emotional, but always just cynical enough to keep it away from stale stilton, The Doctor, The Widow and the Wardrobe is the riskiest story Moffat has created – he referenced Star Wars, the Battle of Britain and Narnia in the first five minutes! But the Doctor once again delivered. This episode didn’t just have a great ending, it had two weepy finales – even the Doctor was teary. And Matt Smith continues to make it seem like he has played the part for 49 years. Doctor one, Downton nil.

(Brian McIver, Paul English)
SFX
Newcomer director Farren Blackburn brings style to spare, conjuring a 1940s rich in period atmosphere and dripping with People's Friend nostalgia, all home-knits, rainy lanes and hazy streetlamps. He also has a fine eye for the evocative visual: whether it be a Lancaster Bomber soaring into the time vortex or Halo-style armoured warriors walking the snows of a Narniaesque forest, this is, ultimately, an episode that trades in the kind of brilliant, reality-mashing juxtapositions that feel uniquely and unmistakably Doctor Who.

(Nick Setchfield)
Den of Geek
The Doctor Who Christmas special, as both Moffat and Russell T Davies have noted over the years, is a slightly different beast. Accepting that a large bulk of people watch it after a bloated day, and not short of either sugar-laden or alcoholic beverages, its tone tends to be just a little lighter. Moffat works that very much in his favour, but doesn’t shy away from the darkness in the background. Madge’s choice is never far away.

It was a treat to have a gentle, well told, standalone story, that proved you don’t have to veer away from an emotive and adventurous story, just because it’s Christmas time. A lovely piece of television, and a smashing way to spend a Christmas night in front of the telly. Pass the turkey sandwiches...

(Simon Brew)
Assignment X (United States)
There’s a solid pro-nature element that fits very well with the best of socially and ecologically conscious Doctor Who (Green Death, anyone?), but ultimately this story’s strongest theme is the celebration of the power in a mother’s love. While some have already found problems with the notion, I think it’s important to remember that every individual character in every story does not have to represent every other member of their gender. In this one instance, it’s a lovely, inspirational message for this very family-oriented time of year, and it doesn’t detract at all from any other strengths that female characters might and should exhibit.

(Arnold T Blumberg)

io9 (United States)
You know the story's a bit underwhelming when the characters have to keep commenting noisily about how cool it really is. Every few minutes, Matt Smith puts all his formidable gusto into announcing that Madge Arwell is flying a forest through the time vortex with her mind, and that this is really really cool. Really. Even though to all appearances, we've just spent the last half hour listening to characters stand around discussing plot devices inside a harvester set and a tree-castle set.

Luckily, because this is a Moffat episode, even the slow middle part is crammed with quotable, memorable dialogue that would be in your .sig file if anybody still had .sig files.

Of course, the task of a Doctor Who Christmas special is generally to be entertaining fluff, without much in the way of darkness or complicated plots to overtax the brandy-soaked gray matter. And "Wardrobe" moves fast enough, and is inventive enough, that you can sort of slide past some of the muddled bits and enjoy Matt Smith doing what he does best. And it's nice that, coming so soon after the tribute to Craig's fatherhood, we get an extended tribute to motherhood.

(Charlie Jane Anders)

Digital Journal
This year there was plenty of action, some good scenes and witty dialogue. There is less 'toing and froing' back and forth in time as the story is played out in a more linear fashion than recent episodes of the last TV series. Possibly a bit too much Spielbergian sentimentality, but hey it's Christmas. The comic elements were provided by Bill Bailey and Arabella Weir.

Personally, although I've enjoyed the Christmas Doctor Who episodes I've also been slightly disappointed with them compared with the regular series (many Doctor Who fans are often a little disappointed with the festive fare). I think it is because the something is sacrificed in aiming for the general viewer, who will tune in whilst munching a minced pie, whereas the series can develop a more intricate story and cater for the ardent fan.

Monday, 26 December 2011

Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger's next episode will be the Kakuranger tribute episode. Although it is already revealed that Ninjaman, or Samuraiman, is their Great Power, here are additional information for the next episode and beyond:

Please take these rumors with a grain of salt!

Episode 46: Awatenbō Ninja - 01/08

Samuraiman is the Key, which unlocks a summon used alongside Shinken GokaiOh.
Worzard Fire, Samuraiman and Zubann are used by Joe, Luka and Ahim, who grow to giant size.
Episode 47: N/A - 01/15
To avenge the dead Sentai members, Hayate Sho swears to kill Basco.
Sally is Basco's sister, who would be saved by the Grand Powers
Each Gokaiger uses one of the 5 keys relating to one of the teams Basco stole.
Fiveman's Great Power has something to do with summoning "Gingaman" when Basco uses it.
Sally and Basco die though the use of all 5 stolen Grand Powers.
Episode 48: N/A - 01/22
Marvelous uses the AkaRed key and summons the "Sac Red."
Joe and Gai pilot GokaiOh and GoZyuJin alongside it and fights the ultimate Zangyack weapon, the Gill War. It is purple and has a resemblance to Dairanger's Daijinryuu.
Thanks to Captain Jingles for the tip!

EDIT: According to many sources, the rumors are just made up by a fan. So who knows if this one is true or not.

8.9 million watched the Doctor Who Christmas Special, The Doctor, The Widow and The Wardrobe according to unofficial overnight figures.

Doctor Who was the third most watched programme of the day, with the two soaps taking the top two spots with EastEnders winning the day with 9.9 million and Coronation Street just beating Doctor Who with 9.0 million watching.

Downton Abbey took fourth spot with 8.1 million watching.

Against Doctor Who, All Star Family Fortunes managed 6.1 million viewers.

Doctor Who had the highest audience share for the day with 34.2% of the available audience.

BBC One took six of the top ten places with ITV1 taking four, a contrast to the previous few years which have seen BBC One dominate the top ten chart for Christmas Day. All viewing figures are considerably down on recent years.

Doctor Who is the fourth most watched programme of the week on overnight figures.

It is important to note that the overnight figures are an initial estimate. Final figures, including those who record the programme and watch it within a week, will be published by BARB in around 8 days time.

With just a few hours to go before the real reason Christmas television exists, here's a brief roundup of what the papers say ...

Guardian
Moffat becomes quite unashamedly romantic at this time of year. It gives little away to say that this second world war-set, Narnia-inspired tale is one of the smallest stories we've seen on Doctor Who in recent years. But it also delivers the most effective emotional suckerpunches.

After the events of The Wedding of River Song, The Doctor is, in the eyes of the universe, dead; to kill time before the next storyline arc, he's larking around on doomed spacecraft and doing favours for random evacuated families. When wartime yummy mummy Madge Arwell helps him out of one of such scrapes, he goes to exceptional lengths to return the favour, and inevitably the whole thing ends up going calamitously wrong. Supported by a pair of unusually tolerable child actors, Claire Skinner carries the episode with a soulful performance, while Bill Bailey and Arabella Weir clock on to balance things out with the laughs.

Admittedly it lacks, for instance, a gigantic Cyberman stomping across Victorian London, and the story feels ludicrous even by festive Who standards. But only the stoniest-hearted viewer will finish watching this without finding something in their eye.

(Dan Martin)

From the depths of a silent forest beckons a wintry tale of wartime pluck. Steven Moffat's latest festive panto is a typically lavish affair, with the Doctor and a resilient 1940s widow (Claire Skinner) embroiled in an ingenious take on The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. The Spielbergian sentimentality (dead pilots, preternaturally sensible youngsters) gets a bit Sensodyne Extra at times, but there are proper chills (time portals, talking trees, pulsing bauble things) and larks (Bill Bailey) and, as with all the best Christms specials, the sense that all is well with the world.

(Sarah Dempster)
Telegraph
"Whopremo" Steven Moffat's suitably seasonal take on The Lion, The Witch & The Wardrobe. It’s a witty, wintry wartime adventure with added spaceships and Lancaster bombers. As cockle-warming as mulled wine, merrily magical and a real family treat.

(Michael Hogan)

Belfast Telegraph
Last year, EastEnders knocked Dr Who into second place, with viewing figures peaking at 11.7m, but Sky Bet spokeswoman Helen Jacob said the science fiction family favourite might well be the dark horse to sneak through with most viewers on Christmas Day this year.

The show fronted by livewire and 11th Time Lord, Matt Smith, appeals to all age groups. Quirky comedian Bill Bailey is just one of the stars drafted in to ensure Dr Who fans enjoy this Sunday’s one-hour episode and its exploration of a magical wintry world.

(Amanda Poole)
Los Angeles Times
In Great Britain, this event amounts to a national tradition; but for followers here, it is no less of a calendar moment, a candle in winter coming months after the end of the last season and months before the beginning of the next, when the days are actually at their darkest.

Like Lewis' "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe," Moffat's "The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe" — something of a giveaway, again — is set during World War II and concerns children evacuated to a country house, where a "dimensional portal thingy" leads to a wooded world all covered in snow. (And Lewis' description of heaven as a place that grows larger the further in you go has always reminded me of the Tardis, the Doctor's bigger-on-the-inside time machine.)

In the spirit of the season, its signal images are of trees and lights, and by Moffat's usual time-twisting standards, it's a relatively straightforward narrative, a sci-fi fairy tale catalyzed by a wish and watered with the old magic of human tears. Moffat is all about the old magic.

(Robert Lloyd)
Scotsman
Matt Smith excels as usual, but he’s ably supported by Claire Skinner from Outnumbered as a mother who’ll stop at nothing to protect her kids – the episode is fundamentally a touching paean to parenthood – and Bill Bailey and Arabella Weir as comically ineffectual “antagonists”. It also pits the sonic screwdriver against its ultimate foe, finds the Doctor gaining a nifty new soubriquet, and tosses in the obligatory throwaway reference for old-school fans to go “Ooh!” at. It’s not just the spirit of the season making me giddy – this is truly beautiful television.

(Paul Whitelaw)

Watch out tomorrow for a roundup of what the papers have to say about the festive adventure post-broadcast, and you can also read our own review of the episode later tonight.

Taito, the maker of prizes for game machines, announced on Thursday that it is combining The Powerpuff Girls animated series from America with the virtual Vocaloid idols from Japan. The collaboration celebrates the 10th anniversary of the Japanese premiere for the Cartoon Network's animated series.

Taito posted an illustration of The Powerpuff Girls' Blossom character in a costume inspired by Crypton Future Media's Vocaloid character Hatsune Miku. Appearing alongside Blossom are Hatsune Miku herself, Kagamine Rin and Len, and Megurine Luka — drawn by artist nigo in the style of The Powerpuff Girls creator Craig McCracken. According to Taito, it is currently planning prizes based on the collaboration.

Enterbrain's Famitsu website began streaming the newest 58-second promotional video for the Amagami SS+ television anime series on Friday. The video had premiered during a live recording of the Amagami web radio program "Ryoko and Kana's Amagami Coming Sweet" that was also held on Friday in Tokyo. The hosts of the program, Ryoko Shintani (Rihoko Sakurai) and Kana Asumi (Miya), were joined by other cast members and singer Azusa, who sings the themes for both Amagami SS and Amagami SS+. Azusa sang the opening theme song "Check my soul" and the ending theme song "Kokuhaku" (Confession) at the event.

The event also unveiled the "Amagami SS+ Manma Nikuman", a meat bun that will be sold for a limited time only at LAWSON's convenience stores in Tokyo's Kantō area, starting January 10. Famitsu muses if that people were to eat the pork bun — a favorite snack of Amagami protagonist's sister Miya — they might make the "nishishi" laugh like her.

Like the first Amagami SS anime, Amagami SS+ adapts Enterbrain's PlayStation 2 romance simulation game Amagami. The anime will premiere in Japan on January 5. Sentai Filmworks released Amagami SS in North America in September.

Here we go with another 10, we have ours tomorrow, from someone who was at the press screening!

1. The episode picks up mere moments after the prequel ends...
2. "Did you fall? Where did you fall from?"
3. There's a moment that recalls the 1979 Bond film Moonraker.
4. "I like the bombing - it's exciting!"
5. The Doctor - briefly - has a new catchphrase.
6. "Beware of panthers!"
7. There's a reference to a Peter Davison-era Doctor Who adventure...
8. "That man is quite ridiculous!"
9. We also get a nod to an early Christopher Eccleston episode.
10. "Eyes on the box!"

Matt Smith appeared on The Graham Norton Show tonight, during which he chatted about his Christmas plans, his brushes with fandom, and of course about a certain show he's become associated with that airs on Christmas Day!

When asked about the recent announcment regarding Karen Gillan's departure from the show, he said:
I've known a while, actually, because we've known for a couple of months. It's by mutual consent - I think really those stories just come to a point where it reaches its conclusion, and the very essence of the show is that it constantly re-invents itself.

(on whether he'd go at the same time) I'm very happy to stay, I love it, I love making the show, but I'll miss Karen because she's a good mate, one of my best mates. She's a cracker - mad as a box of cats - but she's a firecracker, she really is.

Talking about fandom, both he and fellow guest Gillian Anderson discussed attending Comic-Cons, with Matt mentioning how he met up with all the other 'Doctors', and when he and co-star Karen Gillan met 'themselves':

Friday, 23 December 2011

Shogakukan's online advertising for Shonen Sunday Super revealed that the magazine's March issue will launch several new manga series on January 25. Kenjirou Hata's Colorful Hayate no Gotoku! (Colorful Hayate the Combat Butler) will begin in the issue and include bonus 4- and 6-panel comics. Hata's original Hayate the Combat Butler manga debuted in Shogakukan's Weekly Shonen Sunday magazine in 2004.

Yutaka Abe and Denjiro Maru's Meitantei Conan: Seiki matsu no majutsushi (Case Closed: The Last Magician of the Century) manga will launch in Weekly Shonen Sunday's March issue. The three-chapter manga will be based on Gosho Aoyama's original story and adapt the 1999 film of the same name. Aoyama's new Meitantei Conan: Sousa Ichi-ka Hen manga will also retell the story of Conan's first case.

Hiroshi Nakanishi will draw a new Mobile Suit Gundam AGE manga as a tie-in with the current television anime series. Nakanishi released the two-part Kidō Senshi Gundam AGE: Hajimari no Monogatari manga in Weekly Shonen Sunday in October. Ken Sasaki's King Golf manga will also return with supervision by the golfer Masaki Tani. King Golf launched in Weekly Shonen Sunday in August 2008.

Shogakukan's advertising announced two manga titles for the magazine's April issue, which will ship in February. Shun Matsuena's Shijō Saikyō no Deshi Kenichi (KenIchi the Mightiest Disciple) manga will tell the story from the original anime DVD. Kōichirō Hoshino will illustrate the Aura ~Maryūinkōga Saigo no Tatakai manga based on Romeo Tanaka's light novel series and mebae's character designs. Shogakukan stated on Wednesday that reports of an anime film adaptation of Tanaka's work were "partially in error."

The first commercial for the Amagami SS+ television anime sequel series began airing on Thursday. Amagami SS+ will premiere on January 5. Singer Azusa will return to sing the sequel series' opening theme song.

The first 26-episode Amagami SS anime series adapted Enterbrain's PlayStation 2 romance simulation game Amagami. The original game centers around a second-year high school boy who find himself uneasy during Christmastime due to an experience in the past. However, this year at Christmas, he gets his last chance to ask out a graduating female senior named Haruka Morishima — or one of several other classmates. Yoshimasa Hiraike and AIC's anime aired from July to December of last year.

David Tennant has recorded the audio version of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang Flies Again, the sequel to the original book/film by Ian Fleming. The actor was chosen by the Fleming family, with his niece saying: "We are thrilled that David agreed to read the audio book. He is such a talented actor and his voice brings Frank Cottrell Boyce's story to life. Chitty could not have been in safer hands with him behind the wheel." Tennant also commented on the accompanying audio interview: "The idea of a flying car is hard to better. I think we would all love to have a car that would take off, escape the traffic and fly you to any country in the world." [BBC News, Press Association, 21 Dec 2011]

Steven Moffat talks about his immediate future with Doctor Who: "I genuinely haven’t got a plan, except I'll probably have to stop at some point or I'll die. And dying would be bad. But my main concern is not so much how long I do it, but that I absolutely, definitely am going to be handing it on to somebody else. I want it to be in great shape, and some day I want somebody else to come in and knock my socks off with what they do with it. You don't want to be the last person in the relay race, do you?" [The Scotsman, 20 Dec 2011]

Bill Bailey reflects on watching Doctor Who as a child: "My grandparents lived with us, and I remember watching Doctor Who with my granddad on his new telly. These were the days before remote controls but my granddad, being quite a resourceful sort of chap, had fashioned his own remote control – which was a length of bamboo pole with a bit of cork that he’d glued on the end." [Telegraph, 22 Dec 2011]

Alexander Armstrong cites Matt Smith as his (now) favourite Doctor: "He has such tremendous charisma, he has such an extraordinary face and voice and his manner ... everything about him, I think. He's perfect, spot on!" [Telegraph, 23 Dec 2011]

On being asked if she'd like to be in Doctor Who, actress Helen Mirren commented: "I would like to play the new female Doctor Who. I don’t want to just be his sidekick." [Daily Star, 20 Dec 2011]

The Doctor, The Widow and The Wardrobe
The guest stars give their views on being in the festive adventure:

Arabella Weir: "I was genuinely surprised and completely thrilled. I must confess, though, that this is not because I’ve been a Doctor Who fan since childhood. I don’t subscribe to the Doctor Who magazine and we’ve only got the normal amount of Doctor Who fridge magnets. That said, I do love the show - my kids and I have watched it religiously since its return. And I did watch it as a child, completely terrified out of my wits, accompanied by my braver, older brothers who marvelled at the horrifying monsters while I cowered in the corner of the sofa, occasionally peeping over the top of a cushion. The real reason I was thrilled was because it’s such a fantastic show, brilliantly written and produced, and here they were, wanting me to be part of it! I instantly said yes, without even reading the script. When I did finally read it, I got even more excited since it turned out I was to play an alien from the future alongside Bill Bailey and would get to wear a proper, full-on, metal-with-flashing-lights alien outfit and hold a shiny gun!" [Telegraph, 22 Dec 2011]

Alexander Armstrong: "I'm acting with Claire Skinner in a little World War II setting - it's a very sweet Christmas story, very nice, very touching, very stirring - very exciting indeed! I'm really pleased to have got in, particularly while Steven (Moffat)'s in his pomp. It's a sort of 'purple patch' of Doctor Who and it's lovely to be right in there!" [Digital Spy, 22 Dec 2011]

Bill Bailey: "When I arrived at the set, it was quite breathtaking ... this beautiful forest, decked out in snow – it looked amazing. And then us as forest space farmers clanging around, it was such fun. It was a juxtaposition of all that is the essence of Doctor Who for me." [Telegraph, 22 Dec 2011]

Thursday, 22 December 2011

Manga Entertainment has listed its top-selling anime releases of 2011 through its twitter feed. In descending order, they are:

1. Akira 2011 reissue (Blu-Ray)

2. Yu-Gi-Oh! 3D: Bonds Beyond Time (DVD)

3. Summer Wars

4. 5 Centimetres per Second

5. Evangelion: 2.22 You Can (Not) Advance

6. Highschool of the Dead

7. Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood: Volume 3

In a subsequent twitter discussion, Manga described Summer Wars and 5 Centimetres per Second as "evergreen" titles. Asked about the high placing of Yu-Gi-Oh! 3D: Bonds Beyond Time, Manga commented, " I think [it was] because it was available in Asda and Morrisons, came with a free rare card and was stupidly cheap on [the] shelf." On the next Evangelion film, Manga said, "Eva 3.0 is taking a long time to arrive. We can only hope for a late 2012 release in Japan."

Although the top five placings are all cinema feature films, Manga said that anime series are "still our bread and butter." Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, Naruto, Bleach, Death Note, D.Gray-man, Eden of the East and Darker than Black were all said to be "going strong."

Among Manga's ongoing series, volumes 5 to 7 of Naruto Shippūden sold "over 16,000 copies this year" and Bleach seasons 6 and 7 "sold over 8,000 units this year combined." The Eden of the East anime, consisting of the TV series (released in the U.K in 2010) and two follow-up films (released in 2011) had sold a combined total of nearly 12,000 copies.

Manga Entertainment has confirmed through its twitter feed that it will release the series Shiki (pictured) next year. Shiki originated as a series of horror novels written by Fuyumi Ono (Twelve Kingdoms, Ghost Hunt). In 2007, artist Ryu Fujisaki (Hoshin Engi, Soul Hunter) announced that he would adapt the novels into a manga, which would then be adapted into a TV anime for Fuji TV's prominent Noitamina late-night content block. Funimation is distributing the series in America.

Manga also said that it would acquire Black Butler II, the sequel series to the original Victorian supernatural anime Black Butler, but gave no further details.

Manga also asked its twitter followers, “Which One Piece movies have an English dub available?,” adding that not enough people would buy the DVD without the dub.

The game developer Sega announced on Wednesday that a television special on the virtual singer Hatsune Miku's concerts will air on the Tokyo MX station during Japan's New Year's holidays. Barrring schedule changes, the one-hour special will air at 9:00 p.m. on Tuesday, January 3.
Miku no Hi Dai-Kanshasai: Shōkai Shichaimasu yo♪ 1-Jikan Special will feature 39 minutes of concert footage, particularly from Japan's "Hatsune Miku Live Party 2011" concert and America's "Mikunopolis in Los Angeles: Happy to meet you! I'm Hatsune Miku" concert. It will also have previously unseen behind-the-scenes footage from the preparations for next year's "Miku no Hi Dai-Kanshasai" concert event, as well as the premiere of footage from the "MikuPa Singapore" concert.

Sega and MAGES are co-sponsoring the combined "Miku no Hi Dai-Kanshasai" event next March. The "Hatsune Miku Live Party 2012" concert will be held twice on March 8, while the "Saigo no" ("Last") Miku no Hi Kanshasai concert will be held twice on March 9.